MY LOVELY BLOG

I have my Christmas Day cold already. You know – the one you wake up with on Christmas Day after too many breakfast eggnogs.

It’s a cruel mistress to be served a cold at the beginning of December. So – milk thistle in easy reach, I’m taking control of this situation with this wintery broth which I hope is full of warming, cold-warding properties via the power of fungus.

Mushrooms get a bad rep. Yes – they’re kind of weird as they grow in the forest and are made into cartoons and make you feel funny depending on which variety you consume. But they are pretty cool too and have spores that travel by air to survive and are full of vitamin B (my nemesis) and D if you’re a clever little button-mush.

You can chuck in other winter health boosters to the soup too:

Spinach – full of iron…sure!

Nori – have you got A, C, and calcium for me? Great!

Ginger – you have medicinal properties? Just looking at you makes me feel better!

Miso – salty and great for my gut bacteria…get in my belly!

This is bastardised from the main man Jamie Oliver for us veggies. Prepare yourself this Yuletide! And let all the eggnog be yours.

20g dried Porcini mushrooms

150g mixed mushrooms (I was lucky enough to find a pack in Morrisons which had Shittake, Oyster and Eryngii!)

First things first. It’s time to un-dry those porcini so get them in a small bowl of water for at least 20 minutes. Then add the sesame oil to a big pan, gently heat and then throw in your red onion. Matchstick your ginger and once the onions have sautéed add to the pan before adding your hot stock and the miso paste. Throw in the porcini – dirty juice and all. Pop a lid on and simmer on a low heat.

Next, top and half your radish, pop in a bowl and add your vinegar for some speed pickling. After 10 minutes, break up your mixed mushrooms into spoon-sized pieces and throw into the pan along with the spinach. Rip most of the nori in keeping a little to decorate.

Leave to simmer for a further 5 minutes so that the mushrooms still have some bite…no one likes slimy mushrooms. Micro-up your rice and place in bowls topping with your pickled radish.